Future Progress
Illustration by John Crossen
A reason for this is longstanding disenfranchisement from communities across Canada at the hands of the Canadian blood system through the various blood bans reinforced logics of who was a good citizen and who was a bad one, however, CBS has been actively working to push through and resolve these relationships with the public.
While changing how screening was done, the SBBS model still delineates who is able to donate blood on the same basis of sexual behaviour, essentially re-naming the MSM deferral. While “risk” is an important thing to consider in a health, blood, and plasma donation context, a SBBS screening model does not ask a single question about vaginal or oral sex, condom use, or any other risk behaviour other than “anal sex” (Lam). In response, Dr. Sher stated that “The evidence is really clear that anal sex is still a significantly higher risk factor for transmission of diseases, such as HIV. Then it's vaginal sex or oral sex” (Lam). While Dr. Sher answers why eligibility screening questions donors about anal sex, he also acknowledges that vaginal and oral sex still pose a risk of HIV transmission despite not being asked during screening.
Prior to the move to a 12 month deferral period in July of 2022, Triple-X Workers’ Solidarity Association of British Columbia, published a 34 page brief submitted to Health Canada, authored by sex workers’ rights activist Andrew Sorfleet, on the blood donation ban for sex workers. In this report, Triple-X demanded that CBS “remove all questions regarding sexual services transactions as a basis for eligibility…”, “acknowledge the very low [sexually transmitted blood-borne infection] transmission risks…”, remove sex workers or their clients from the list of populations at heightened risk of STBBI, and endorse and advocate for the decriminalization of sex work as aligned with occupational health and safety (Sorfleet, 3). This report continued, highlighting that sex workers are used as continuous “scapegoats,” with blood donation systems maintaining stigma of promiscuity and “risk.” As stated by Andrew when discussing the matter with Charlie Smith, “I sort of feel that we can’t really advertise that our members are providing fully safe services when the Public Health Agency of our country is saying that we’re more likely to have STDs than anyone else, which really means we’re more likely to transmit STDs.…It is a stigma.” (Smith).
Canadian Blood Services Self-Reporting Ethnic Group Composition, 2025
Additionally, calls for more blood and plasma donations are reflective of “systemic and longstanding harms that have not been appropriately addressed,” as stated by author Dr. OmiSoore H. Dryden. In her book Got Blood to Give: Anti-Black Homophobia in Blood Donation, Dr. Dryden goes further to state that institutions such as CBS “fail to document [Black communities’] concerns, readily dismiss our critiques, and frame us as fundamentally not believable and as unstable, angry, selfish for asking for special treatment” (92). Criteria pertaining to living or having sexual contact with someone born in or lived in Africa have been removed from the donor criteria and questionnaire as of 2018, however, work to build connections and trust with Black and African people on CBS’s behalf is still underway, and they are working to dedicate attention to how these communities have been disenfranchised or harmed by previous blood donation policies, especially in the case of the research Dr. Dryden’s has done in partnership with CBS.
Further, non-binary donors are still required to provide their assigned sex a birth at their blood donation appointment due to the need to determine how regularly they are able to donate blood, instead of instating a blanket rest period for donors of all genders (testimony gathered by researcher). These reflect critical points where CBS is committed to growing and better reflecting Canadian communities through their blood donation policies. CBS is currently working in consultation with trans community members as well as working with the registration software owner for their, currently binary registration system, to better reflect and be inclusive for trans, non-binary, and gender diverse individuals. Additionally, along with moving to the SBBS model, changes to screening protocols also include no longer asking if trans donors have had gender affirming surgery and no longer asking donors to verbally state their gender at donor appointment.
Looking at the root of community fractures with the blood donation system, systemic anti-black racist homophobia and transphobia, and involving community members in policy discussions, such is the case with the 2SLGBTQIA+ advisory committee, are essential, and will allow for Canadian Blood Services to strengthen its long-term donor base and to further build a diverse, anti-racist blood and plasma donor pool.
Flyer from the Canadian Federation of Student's End the Ban! campaign